Raina thumps Awana for 33 in an over

Suresh Raina was single-handedly making a mockery of a 227-run target before his run-out in the seventh over paved the way for a 24-run Kings XI Punjab victory. No bowler was spared during his 25-ball 87, but Parvinder Awana came in for special treatment, conceding 33 runs off his second over - only once had an over been more expensive in the IPL, when Chris Gayle took on Prasanth Parameswaran in 2011. This is the excerpt from ESPNcricinfo's ball-by-ball commentary on Friday's game.

5.1 Awana to Raina, SIX, six more, everything Raina touches clears the ropes, this one is not even off the middle of the bat, high on the blade but there's still enough to send that clear of the midwicket boundary

5.2 Awana to Raina, SIX, shot! Raina's innings has been peppered with some jaw-dropping hits, this is another of them, a length ball is cleanly struck over long-on, holds the pose after playing the shot, effortless and full of style

5.3 Awana to Raina, FOUR, OMG! incredible from Raina, and I am soon going to run out of synonyms, this was a full ball angling away outside off, Raina flicks that towards midwicket, I thought it would be a single, instead he has found the gap and that has gone away for four

5.4 Awana to Raina, FOUR, four again, 6 6 4 4 so far in this over, pitched up and outside off, carted towards deep square leg for four more

5.5 Awana to Raina, (no ball) FOUR, another boundary, I think I should just keep that in my copy-paste, high full toss outside off, Raina just helps it towards third man for four, and that is a no-ball as well

5.5 Awana to Raina, FOUR, make that 29 off five now, Raina launches this length ball over mid-on for four more, incredible stuff this, Dhoni calm as ever in the dressing room

5.6 Awana to Raina, FOUR, 100 in six overs! I am out of words! Raina finishes this over off with another boundary, this time towards deep square leg, this over has had 6 6 4 4 4nb 4 4, 33 off the over, at this rate Sehwag's son might be teased some more at his school

Our team India batsmen of 2014 Raina is blasting one and all including Mitchey Johnson !!! In the '2011 IPL too Raina did the same bu what happened post IPL '2011 is history now. So much discussions on the IPL final as to each will fare , how thrilling it will be etc etc . This is a comfort time for team India players . Best of luck post IPL '2014

android_user
on May 31, 2014, 11:02 GMT

Everybody talks about this over .I was at wankhede last night supporting KXIP but applauded most shots of Raina .Awana s next over went for 2 runs and he also took two wickets .He should be recognised for that .

baghels.a
on May 31, 2014, 9:27 GMT

@HarshThakor, very eloquently put, @Funnykid, although i am not the biggest fans of Raina but yesterday he was just simply sublime and one had to get up and applaud , BTW i don't agree that all IPL franchises have just one or two quality bowlers , if your aim was to run down Indian domestic bowlers then you will be well advised to look at the Top 10 list for most wicket takers and economy rate this IPL and you will find mostly Indian bowlers, what i do agree is both Yuvi and Raina when playing red ball cricket in fast and bouncy wickets have struggled , Raina has age and desire on his side and may be he has turned a corner against short pitched bowling, anyways why excelling against fast bowling should be the only benchmark for batting greatness ?? shouldn't excelling on low and slow,spinning,flat,seaming pitches be also a yardstick while judging a batsman ?? currently 90 % of short form cricket is played in such conditions and even test pitches in AUS and SA are slowing down..

dummy4fb
on May 31, 2014, 9:16 GMT

For people critcising Raina on being FTB and Mediocre attacks, please look at his other team mates... Lets accept that he is in phenomenal touch, and a really good batting all-rounder in limited overs cricket.

Scoring 33 runs in an over is almost impossible in a gulli level cricket, let alone a first-class cricket, where owners have bought players worth millions of rupees.

Give credit where it is due!

godshand
on May 31, 2014, 8:03 GMT

Wish SR can repeat such performance on BOUNCY tracks !!!

funnykid
on May 31, 2014, 7:47 GMT

Raina performs very well in sub-continent and against ordinary bowling but always struggles against top quality bowling especially very quick bowling. The whole world knows he is suspect against the short stuff. He is a prolific run getter in IPL because every team has one or two quality bowlers and the rest are mediocre. Look at his international career, nothing extraordinary. However, Veru on the other hand has been a world class player throughout his career. Raina and Youvraj are great players against ordinary bowling but both could not keep their places in Indian team because of their weakness against quality fast bowling.

fiddlerv90
on May 31, 2014, 7:28 GMT

That was amazing, its a shame his teammates failed him. That was a winning knock but dhoni blew it away with 42 of 5.1 overs .. Lol.. Best finisher when run a ball is needed is dhoni without a doubt.

harshthakor
on May 31, 2014, 5:47 GMT

Raina's onslaught was like a bomber raiding an airbase.It contained the imagination of a power,the skill of an architect and the explosive power of a bomb.If he had continued batting Chennai may have been home with some overs to spare!It is the best knock I have ever seen in I.P.L.cricket.Above all it was not sheer slogging but innovative craftsmanship.

The milion dollar question is whether Chennai would have coasted home,won by a narrow margin or lost very narrowly had Rain not been dismissed.Remember the outstanding performance of Punjab's slow bowlers who made a total metamorphosis to the state of the game.In the end the run rate went to 20 with 3 overs to go and 24 were required in the final over.Maybe Chennai would have missed out by inches even had Rain scored a hundred!

Really sad to see Chennai not making a fist of the game let alone loosing it.

dummy4fb
on May 31, 2014, 5:30 GMT

Raina played one of the finest innings ever played in any form of cricket . While Raina was at the crease,the effort of Sehwag almost meandered into mediocrity . I feel very sad for Raina that his superlative effort was not in a winning cause. On the whole,poor contribution from CSK's overseas players contributed to the loss. No doubt the same set of players have contributed to the teams progress in the earlier matches but they failed to make any impact at the most vital moment .Dhoni also contributed to the loss by coming in to bat after Jadeja and Hussey . Being a proven match winner, Dhoni should have taken the bull by the horn by coming into bat when CSK lost Raina due to poor response from Macullum.CSK lost a golden oppurtunity to appear in their sixth IPL final mainly due to the above factors.

Naresh28
on May 31, 2014, 5:26 GMT

Raina is a limited overs player. Sometimes fans criticize him unnecessarily
He and Jadeja are tje best fielders India have. He may not be the best
for tests, but still will be penciled in by the selectors when forming a team.

entryholedia
on June 1, 2014, 5:29 GMT

Our team India batsmen of 2014 Raina is blasting one and all including Mitchey Johnson !!! In the '2011 IPL too Raina did the same bu what happened post IPL '2011 is history now. So much discussions on the IPL final as to each will fare , how thrilling it will be etc etc . This is a comfort time for team India players . Best of luck post IPL '2014

android_user
on May 31, 2014, 11:02 GMT

Everybody talks about this over .I was at wankhede last night supporting KXIP but applauded most shots of Raina .Awana s next over went for 2 runs and he also took two wickets .He should be recognised for that .

baghels.a
on May 31, 2014, 9:27 GMT

@HarshThakor, very eloquently put, @Funnykid, although i am not the biggest fans of Raina but yesterday he was just simply sublime and one had to get up and applaud , BTW i don't agree that all IPL franchises have just one or two quality bowlers , if your aim was to run down Indian domestic bowlers then you will be well advised to look at the Top 10 list for most wicket takers and economy rate this IPL and you will find mostly Indian bowlers, what i do agree is both Yuvi and Raina when playing red ball cricket in fast and bouncy wickets have struggled , Raina has age and desire on his side and may be he has turned a corner against short pitched bowling, anyways why excelling against fast bowling should be the only benchmark for batting greatness ?? shouldn't excelling on low and slow,spinning,flat,seaming pitches be also a yardstick while judging a batsman ?? currently 90 % of short form cricket is played in such conditions and even test pitches in AUS and SA are slowing down..

dummy4fb
on May 31, 2014, 9:16 GMT

For people critcising Raina on being FTB and Mediocre attacks, please look at his other team mates... Lets accept that he is in phenomenal touch, and a really good batting all-rounder in limited overs cricket.

Scoring 33 runs in an over is almost impossible in a gulli level cricket, let alone a first-class cricket, where owners have bought players worth millions of rupees.

Give credit where it is due!

godshand
on May 31, 2014, 8:03 GMT

Wish SR can repeat such performance on BOUNCY tracks !!!

funnykid
on May 31, 2014, 7:47 GMT

Raina performs very well in sub-continent and against ordinary bowling but always struggles against top quality bowling especially very quick bowling. The whole world knows he is suspect against the short stuff. He is a prolific run getter in IPL because every team has one or two quality bowlers and the rest are mediocre. Look at his international career, nothing extraordinary. However, Veru on the other hand has been a world class player throughout his career. Raina and Youvraj are great players against ordinary bowling but both could not keep their places in Indian team because of their weakness against quality fast bowling.

fiddlerv90
on May 31, 2014, 7:28 GMT

That was amazing, its a shame his teammates failed him. That was a winning knock but dhoni blew it away with 42 of 5.1 overs .. Lol.. Best finisher when run a ball is needed is dhoni without a doubt.

harshthakor
on May 31, 2014, 5:47 GMT

Raina's onslaught was like a bomber raiding an airbase.It contained the imagination of a power,the skill of an architect and the explosive power of a bomb.If he had continued batting Chennai may have been home with some overs to spare!It is the best knock I have ever seen in I.P.L.cricket.Above all it was not sheer slogging but innovative craftsmanship.

The milion dollar question is whether Chennai would have coasted home,won by a narrow margin or lost very narrowly had Rain not been dismissed.Remember the outstanding performance of Punjab's slow bowlers who made a total metamorphosis to the state of the game.In the end the run rate went to 20 with 3 overs to go and 24 were required in the final over.Maybe Chennai would have missed out by inches even had Rain scored a hundred!

Really sad to see Chennai not making a fist of the game let alone loosing it.

dummy4fb
on May 31, 2014, 5:30 GMT

Raina played one of the finest innings ever played in any form of cricket . While Raina was at the crease,the effort of Sehwag almost meandered into mediocrity . I feel very sad for Raina that his superlative effort was not in a winning cause. On the whole,poor contribution from CSK's overseas players contributed to the loss. No doubt the same set of players have contributed to the teams progress in the earlier matches but they failed to make any impact at the most vital moment .Dhoni also contributed to the loss by coming in to bat after Jadeja and Hussey . Being a proven match winner, Dhoni should have taken the bull by the horn by coming into bat when CSK lost Raina due to poor response from Macullum.CSK lost a golden oppurtunity to appear in their sixth IPL final mainly due to the above factors.

Naresh28
on May 31, 2014, 5:26 GMT

Raina is a limited overs player. Sometimes fans criticize him unnecessarily
He and Jadeja are tje best fielders India have. He may not be the best
for tests, but still will be penciled in by the selectors when forming a team.

getgopi
on May 31, 2014, 2:38 GMT

I have never seen such incredibly clean hitting in recent times. He was placing his shots everywhere against all the bowlers including Johnson. 360 degrees. Straight bat too. No dillscoops or anything like that. I wouldn't have minded CSK going to the Final just to see Raina bat like that again.

regofpicton
on May 31, 2014, 2:29 GMT

Quite a good account, and certainly entirely accurate, but the words pale by comparison with the apparently effortless beauty of the stroke play.

BarclaysRahul
on May 31, 2014, 1:58 GMT

The sensational batting displays normally lifts the team from dire end to a promising side of things. However, CSK never recovered after the dismal run out of Raina and had to cope with 24 run loss. A very strange scenario, considering how D Smith, McCullum and D Hussey have had been struggling on such a flat track!

dummy4fb
on May 30, 2014, 20:58 GMT

India is blessed to have such fine strikers

Rational_cricket
on May 30, 2014, 20:31 GMT

CSK did loose an important match...but Raina's 25 ball 87...did win so many hearts for sure....tat look of disbelief..on KPXI owners and on the contrary tat look of belief on CSK's fans was all worth it

harshthakor
on May 31, 2014, 5:47 GMT

Raina's onslaught was like a bomber raiding an airbase.It contained the imagination of a power,the skill of an architect and the explosive power of a bomb.If he had continued batting Chennai may have been home with some overs to spare!It is the best knock I have ever seen in I.P.L.cricket.Above all it was not sheer slogging but innovative craftsmanship.

The milion dollar question is whether Chennai would have coasted home,won by a narrow margin or lost very narrowly had Rain not been dismissed.Remember the outstanding performance of Punjab's slow bowlers who made a total metamorphosis to the state of the game.In the end the run rate went to 20 with 3 overs to go and 24 were required in the final over.Maybe Chennai would have missed out by inches even had Rain scored a hundred!

Really sad to see Chennai not making a fist of the game let alone loosing it.

Rational_cricket
on May 30, 2014, 20:31 GMT

CSK did loose an important match...but Raina's 25 ball 87...did win so many hearts for sure....tat look of disbelief..on KPXI owners and on the contrary tat look of belief on CSK's fans was all worth it

dummy4fb
on May 30, 2014, 20:58 GMT

India is blessed to have such fine strikers

BarclaysRahul
on May 31, 2014, 1:58 GMT

The sensational batting displays normally lifts the team from dire end to a promising side of things. However, CSK never recovered after the dismal run out of Raina and had to cope with 24 run loss. A very strange scenario, considering how D Smith, McCullum and D Hussey have had been struggling on such a flat track!

regofpicton
on May 31, 2014, 2:29 GMT

Quite a good account, and certainly entirely accurate, but the words pale by comparison with the apparently effortless beauty of the stroke play.

getgopi
on May 31, 2014, 2:38 GMT

I have never seen such incredibly clean hitting in recent times. He was placing his shots everywhere against all the bowlers including Johnson. 360 degrees. Straight bat too. No dillscoops or anything like that. I wouldn't have minded CSK going to the Final just to see Raina bat like that again.

Naresh28
on May 31, 2014, 5:26 GMT

Raina is a limited overs player. Sometimes fans criticize him unnecessarily
He and Jadeja are tje best fielders India have. He may not be the best
for tests, but still will be penciled in by the selectors when forming a team.

dummy4fb
on May 31, 2014, 5:30 GMT

Raina played one of the finest innings ever played in any form of cricket . While Raina was at the crease,the effort of Sehwag almost meandered into mediocrity . I feel very sad for Raina that his superlative effort was not in a winning cause. On the whole,poor contribution from CSK's overseas players contributed to the loss. No doubt the same set of players have contributed to the teams progress in the earlier matches but they failed to make any impact at the most vital moment .Dhoni also contributed to the loss by coming in to bat after Jadeja and Hussey . Being a proven match winner, Dhoni should have taken the bull by the horn by coming into bat when CSK lost Raina due to poor response from Macullum.CSK lost a golden oppurtunity to appear in their sixth IPL final mainly due to the above factors.

harshthakor
on May 31, 2014, 5:47 GMT

Raina's onslaught was like a bomber raiding an airbase.It contained the imagination of a power,the skill of an architect and the explosive power of a bomb.If he had continued batting Chennai may have been home with some overs to spare!It is the best knock I have ever seen in I.P.L.cricket.Above all it was not sheer slogging but innovative craftsmanship.

The milion dollar question is whether Chennai would have coasted home,won by a narrow margin or lost very narrowly had Rain not been dismissed.Remember the outstanding performance of Punjab's slow bowlers who made a total metamorphosis to the state of the game.In the end the run rate went to 20 with 3 overs to go and 24 were required in the final over.Maybe Chennai would have missed out by inches even had Rain scored a hundred!

Really sad to see Chennai not making a fist of the game let alone loosing it.

fiddlerv90
on May 31, 2014, 7:28 GMT

That was amazing, its a shame his teammates failed him. That was a winning knock but dhoni blew it away with 42 of 5.1 overs .. Lol.. Best finisher when run a ball is needed is dhoni without a doubt.

funnykid
on May 31, 2014, 7:47 GMT

Raina performs very well in sub-continent and against ordinary bowling but always struggles against top quality bowling especially very quick bowling. The whole world knows he is suspect against the short stuff. He is a prolific run getter in IPL because every team has one or two quality bowlers and the rest are mediocre. Look at his international career, nothing extraordinary. However, Veru on the other hand has been a world class player throughout his career. Raina and Youvraj are great players against ordinary bowling but both could not keep their places in Indian team because of their weakness against quality fast bowling.